Monday, April 02, 2012

A bowl of yogurt rice with home made lime pickle on the side is enough to take me back to my childhood. My mom always had a bottle of lime pickle in the fridge. I never tried making it myself until recently and it turned out to be just like what my mom used to make.

Here is the recipe:

Lime pickle recipe

Ingredients

Lime - 10 medium sized (chop 6 of them and juice the remaining 4)

Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1/4 cup (change according to taste)

Salt - 1/4 cup (see notes)

Methi powder - 1 tsp (roast and grind into a fine powder)

Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Mustard - 1 tsp

Oil - 2-3 tbsps

Method

1. Cut the limes into medium sized pieces and transfer to a pyrex/glass bowl. Add the salt and turmeric powder. Add the lime juice, stir, cover and set aside on the countertop for 3 days. Stir the lime mixture once every day.

2. On day three you have to season the lime for the pickle.

3. Pour oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter add the asafoetida and switch off the stove.

4. Wait a couple of minutes until the oil becomes luke warm. Then add the red chilli powder and methi powder. Pour on the lime mixture and stir until completely incorporated. At this stage if the pickle looks dry then heat 1-2 tbsps of oil and add to the pickle.

5. Cover and set on the countertop for one more day. Transfer the pickle to an air tight jar and store in the refrigerator. You can leave some pickle outside for daily use. Replenish as needed.

The refrigerated pickle will be good for a couple of months.

Notes

1. The salt seems a lot but the tartness of the lime offsets the salt. Will be just right for 6 limes. I used Salt Sense low sodium salt.

2. You can use lemons too, but only the ones with a thin skin. If you use the regular lemons that have a thicker skin they will not soak well and the pickle will be dry and the lemons will be too hard to chew.